Windows 98/NT/2000/XP Minimum Requirements

[infringer]

Thinking of installing that new OS on your old PC?

Wonder if its compatible look no further.

OS requirements before installing.

Windows 98
-----------
66mhz 80486DX Processor
16MB of RAM
HDD SPACE 120MB - 355MB
Typical installation requires 170MB - 225MB of disk space.
MUST BE EQUIPPED with a 16 color VGA compatible monitor.

WindowsNT
----------
Minimum Pentium Processor
16MB of RAM
HDD Space 110MB requirement
16 color VGA Monitor
NOTE: WindowsNT is not compatible with as much hardware as
other operating systems.

Windows2000
------------
133MHZ pentium processor
64MB-4GB of RAM
650MB of Space on a 2GB HDD
VGA monitor
CDROM Drive and if BIOS dont support Boot From CD you will
need a 3.5 floppy drive as well.

WindowsXP
----------
233MHZ processor
64MB of RAM
HDD with 1.5GB of freespace
SVGA Monitor with 800x600 resolution.

This should help the folks thinking about upgrading there PC's or installing another version of windows when unsure if your system meets the requirements.

Note: These are the minimal requirements for the following operating systems it is much too your advantage to be above and beyond the minimal requirements.

-infringer-

[bart5986]

I ran windows xp pro on a 166mhz and 64mb ram :)

[infringer]

Well in accordance to the documentation and technical side of things what may have worked for you may not work for the next person so to have a rounded figure that works in all instances the specifications I supplied above are the microsoft certified specifications and with good reason.

-infringer-

[The Hunter]

You cant be too carefull when considering upgrading to a new os on an older machine. I did the compatibility test at PCWorld, and also sent Krell the info from aida32 for his opinion before upgrading to xp.

[g-smooth2k]

Windows XP doesn't run too well on a 500 MHz system with 128MB of Memory though.

Windows 95 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/138349/en-us)
Personal computer with a 386DX or higher processor (486 recommended)
- 4 megabytes (MB) of memory (8 MB recommended)
- Typical hard disk space required to upgrade to Windows 95: 35-40 MB The actual requirement varies depending on the features you choose to install.
- Typical hard disk space required to install Windows 95 on a clean system: 50-55 MB The actual requirement varies depending on the features you choose to install.
- One 3.5-inch high-density floppy disk drive
- VGA or higher resolution (256-color SVGA recommended)

Windows 98 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/182751/en-us)
A personal computer with a 486DX 66 megahertz (MHz) or faster processor (Pentium central processing unit recommended).
- 16 megabytes (MB) of memory (24 MB recommended).
- A typical upgrade from Windows 95 requires approximately 195 MB of free hard disk space, but the hard disk space may range from between 120 MB and 295 MB, depending on your computer configuration and the options that you choose to install.
- A full install of Windows 98 on a FAT16 drive requires 225 MB of free hard disk space, but may range from between 165 MB and 355 MB, depending on your computer configuration and that options that you choose to install.
- A full install of Windows 98 on a FAT32 drive requires 175 MB of free hard disk space, but may range from between 140 MB and 255 MB, depending on your computer configuration and the options that you choose to install.
- One 3.5-inch high-density floppy disk drive.
- VGA or higher resolution (16-bit or 24-bit color SVGA recommended).

Windows ME
Pentium 150MHz processor or better
32MB RAM or better
480MB to 645MB free hard-disk space
CD-ROM drive
28.8Kbs modem or faster with current Internet connection
Sound card
Speakers or headphones
VGA or higher resolution monitor
Microsoft mouse or compatible pointing device

Windows NT4.0 Server (http://www.microsoft.com/ntserver/ProductInfo/Systemreqs/sysreqs.asp)

Windows NT4.0 Workstation (http://www.microsoft.com/ntworkstation/ProductInformation/ProductOverview/systemrequirements/default.asp)

Windows 2000 Professional (http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/professional/evaluation/sysreqs/default.asp)
Computer/Processor 133 MHz or higher Pentium-compatible CPU.
Memory At least 64 megabytes (MB) of RAM; more memory generally improves responsiveness.
Hard Disk 2 GB with 650 MB free space.
CPU Support Windows 2000 Professional supports single and dual CPU systems.
Drive CD-ROM or DVD drive.
Display VGA or higher resolution monitor.
Keyboard Required.

Windows 2000 Server (http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/server/evaluation/sysreqs/default.asp)
Minimum Requirements
Computer/Processor 133 MHz or faster Pentium-compatible processor; supports up to four CPUs on one machine
Memory 128 MB of RAM (256 MB recommended); 4 GB maximum
Hard Disk 2 GB hard disk with 1 GB available hard-disk space; additional available hard-disk space is required if you are installing over a network
Drive CD-ROM or DVD drive
Display VGA or higher-resolution monitor.
Peripheral Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device (optional); ensure that all system components are on the Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) for Windows 2000 Server

Windows 2000 Advanced Server (http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/advancedserver/evaluation/sysreqs/default.asp)

Windows XP Home (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/home/evaluation/sysreqs.mspx)
- PC with 300 megahertz (MHz) or higher processor clock speed recommended; 233-MHz minimum required;* Intel Pentium/Celeron family, AMD K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor recommended
- 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features)
- 1.5 gigabyte (GB) of available hard disk space.*
- Super VGA (800 × 600) or higher resolution video adapter and monitor
- CD-ROM or DVD drive
- Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device

Windows XP Professional (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/evaluation/sysreqs.mspx)
- PC with 300 megahertz or higher processor clock speed recommended; 233 MHz minimum required (single or dual processor system);* Intel Pentium/Celeron family, or AMD K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor recommended
- 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features)
- 1.5 gigabytes (GB) of available hard disk space*
- Super VGA (800 x 600) or higher-resolution video adapter and monitor
- CD-ROM or DVD drive
- Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device

[The Hunter]

You can run it on a 500 with that much memory, and you can speed it up by using the info at Blackvipers site, but more memory sure wont hurt.http://www.blackviper.com/

[g-smooth2k]

though it is an old PC so can't upgrade at all. I maxed out that system.
I ran XP Pro on it but it just takes so much resources.
I though would've liked XP on it.
Removed and Now that system is running up to speed with WinME.
I don't intend on upgrading it any more since I have a way better faster machine than that Turtle or Snail that goes oh so ssssssslllllllllllooooooooowwwwwwwww.

[muffenme]

:fire

XP with sp2 runs well without antivirus program on my Pentium 200 Mhz with 128 MB of main memory and 512 kB of secondary pipe-line cache on a QDI P5I430VX Explorer II type mother board. Now if I could only add a 24 GB hard drive to it then I be set.

edited

Oh 8 MB PCI ATI Rage Pro at 800x600 at 32 bit color.

My friend has a Celeron 450 Mhz with 64 MB and it runs slow with lots of hard drive activity.

:hole

[The Hunter]

You should be able to add that drive, as I used to run a 40 gig on my P133. What I had to use was an overlay program so the drive would be properly recognized. Otherwise your pc will see the new drive as much smaller than it actually is.

[infringer]

My friend has a Celeron 450 Mhz with 64 MB and it runs slow with lots of hard drive activity.

Defragmentation of the volume would cause lots of activity and it wouldnt hurt to have more ram as well..

If he/she added more ram and defragmented the hard drive there would be no issues.

Now if I could only add a 24 GB hard drive to it then I be set.

Well it is to my belief that unless there was some bios update that allowed extended CHS for your bios your pretty much SOL in that dept.


You should be able to add that drive, as I used to run a 40 gig on my P133. What I had to use was an overlay program so the drive would be properly recognized. Otherwise your pc will see the new drive as much smaller than it actually is.

I had just the opposite experience with maxtors ddo (dynamic drive overlay) when running the drive on my linux drive sux I have an 80GB drive can only use like half of it no matter what I did the drive would not be recognized as the correct size in linux. However the drive did run beautifully in windows...

-infringer-